“The Civil War defined us as what we are and it opened us to being what we became, good and bad things…. It was the crossroads of our being, and it was a hell of a crossroads: the suffering, the enormous tragedy of the whole thing.”- Shelby Foote, from The Civil War
When the illustrated edition of The Civil War was first published, The New York Time hailed it as “a treasure for the eye and mind.” Now Geoffrey Ward’s magisterial work of history is available in a text-only edition that interweaves the author’s narrative with the voices of the men and women who lived through the cataclysmic trial of our nationhood: not just Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Robert E. Lee, but genteel Southern ladies and escaped slaves, cavalry officers and common foot soldiers who fought in Yankee blue and Rebel gray.
The Civil War also includes essays by our most distinguished historians of the era: Don E. Fehrenbacher, on the war’s origins; Barbara J. Fields, on the freeing of the slaves; Shelby Foote, on the war’s soldiers and commanders; James M. McPherson, on the political dimensions of the struggle; and C. Vann Woodward, assessing the America that emerged from the war’s ashes.
About The Civil War
The companion volume to the celebrated PBS television series, with a new preface to mark its twenty-fifth anniversary With more than 500 illustrations: rare Civil War photographs—many never before published—as well as paintings, lithographs, and maps reproduced in full color
It was the greatest war in American history. It was waged in 10,000 places—from Valverde, New Mexico, and Tullahoma, Tennessee, to St. Albans, Vermont, and Fernandina on the Florida coast. More than 3 million Americans fought in it and more than 600,000 men died in it. Not only the immensity of the cataclysm but the new weapons, the new standards of generalship, and the new strategies of destruction—together with the birth of photography—were to make the Civil War an event present ever since in the American consciousness. Thousands of books have been written about it. Yet there has never been a history of the Civil War quite like this one.
A wealth of documentary illustrations and a narrative alive with original and energetic scholarship combine to present both the grand sweep of events and the minutest of human details. Here are the crucial events of the war: the firing of the first shots at Fort Sumter; the battles of Shiloh, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg; the siege of Vicksburg; Sherman’s dramatic march to the sea; the surrender at Appomattox. Here are the superb portraits of the key figures: Abraham Lincoln, claiming for the presidency almost autocratic power in order to preserve the Union; the austere Jefferson Davis, whose government disappeared almost before it could be formed; Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant, seasoned generals of fierce brilliance and reckless determination. Here is the America in which the war was fought: The Civil War is not simply the story of great battles and great generals; it is also an elaborate portrait of the American people—individuals and families, northerners and southerners, soldiers and civilians, slaves and slaveowners, rich and poor, urban and rural—caught up in the turbulence of the times.
An additional resonance is provided by four essays, the work of prominent Civil War historians. Don E. Fehrenbacher discusses the causes of the war; Barbara J. Fields writes about emancipation; James M. McPherson looks at the politics of the 1864 election; C. Vann Woodward speculates on how the war has affected the American identity. And Shelby Foote talks to filmmaker Ken Burns about wartime life on the battlefield and at home.
A magnificent book. In its visual power, its meticulous research, its textual brilliance, and the humanity of its narrative, The Civil War will stand among the most illuminating and memorable portrayals of the American past.
From the Hardcover edition.
About The Civil War
The companion volume to the celebrated PBS television series, with a new preface to mark its twenty-fifth anniversary With more than 500 illustrations: rare Civil War photographs—many never before published—as well as paintings, lithographs, and maps reproduced in full color
It was the greatest war in American history. It was waged in 10,000 places—from Valverde, New Mexico, and Tullahoma, Tennessee, to St. Albans, Vermont, and Fernandina on the Florida coast. More than 3 million Americans fought in it and more than 600,000 men died in it. Not only the immensity of the cataclysm but the new weapons, the new standards of generalship, and the new strategies of destruction—together with the birth of photography—were to make the Civil War an event present ever since in the American consciousness. Thousands of books have been written about it. Yet there has never been a history of the Civil War quite like this one.
A wealth of documentary illustrations and a narrative alive with original and energetic scholarship combine to present both the grand sweep of events and the minutest of human details. Here are the crucial events of the war: the firing of the first shots at Fort Sumter; the battles of Shiloh, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg; the siege of Vicksburg; Sherman’s dramatic march to the sea; the surrender at Appomattox. Here are the superb portraits of the key figures: Abraham Lincoln, claiming for the presidency almost autocratic power in order to preserve the Union; the austere Jefferson Davis, whose government disappeared almost before it could be formed; Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant, seasoned generals of fierce brilliance and reckless determination. Here is the America in which the war was fought: The Civil War is not simply the story of great battles and great generals; it is also an elaborate portrait of the American people—individuals and families, northerners and southerners, soldiers and civilians, slaves and slaveowners, rich and poor, urban and rural—caught up in the turbulence of the times.
An additional resonance is provided by four essays, the work of prominent Civil War historians. Don E. Fehrenbacher discusses the causes of the war; Barbara J. Fields writes about emancipation; James M. McPherson looks at the politics of the 1864 election; C. Vann Woodward speculates on how the war has affected the American identity. And Shelby Foote talks to filmmaker Ken Burns about wartime life on the battlefield and at home.
A magnificent book. In its visual power, its meticulous research, its textual brilliance, and the humanity of its narrative, The Civil War will stand among the most illuminating and memorable portrayals of the American past.
About The Civil War
This interactive eBook has been optimized for reading on the iPad.
This deluxe interactive eBook brings the Civil War to life in a new way by combining video and audio from Ken Burns’s beloved film with interactive maps, timelines, and slideshows.
The acclaimed, best-selling companion volume to the celebrated PBS series—the highest-rated series in the history of public television—has now been enhanced to create one of the richest eBook experiences available today, and allow us to better understand and appreciate the greatest challenge our nation has ever faced.
This new edition includes:
• A new preface commemorating the 25th anniversary of the original broadcast of the PBS documentary.
• Nearly an hour of video and audio from the original film. We get wonderful footage re-creating what life was like during the war, Shelby Foote’s peerless storytelling and analysis, and informed commentary from other prominent historians.
• An interactive map that explores troop movements for major battles of the war.
• A Who’s Who of the military leadership of the Civil War to match and compare generals from each side.
• An interactive timeline of major events of the war.
• Original animated maps of the three days at Gettysburg that make it easier than ever to follow this legendary and complicated battle.
• High-resolution slideshows of hundreds of rare photographs as well as paintings, lithographs, and maps in full color.
• Pop-up essays that allow further exploration into cultural and historical subjects that affected life during wartime, including photographs and video.
About The Civil War
“The Civil War defined us as what we are and it opened us to being what we became, good and bad things…. It was the crossroads of our being, and it was a hell of a crossroads: the suffering, the enormous tragedy of the whole thing.”- Shelby Foote, from The Civil War
When the illustrated edition of The Civil War was first published, The New York Time hailed it as “a treasure for the eye and mind.” Now Geoffrey Ward’s magisterial work of history is available in a text-only edition that interweaves the author’s narrative with the voices of the men and women who lived through the cataclysmic trial of our nationhood: not just Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Robert E. Lee, but genteel Southern ladies and escaped slaves, cavalry officers and common foot soldiers who fought in Yankee blue and Rebel gray.
The Civil War also includes essays by our most distinguished historians of the era: Don E. Fehrenbacher, on the war’s origins; Barbara J. Fields, on the freeing of the slaves; Shelby Foote, on the war’s soldiers and commanders; James M. McPherson, on the political dimensions of the struggle; and C. Vann Woodward, assessing the America that emerged from the war’s ashes.
About The Civil War
“The Civil War defined us as what we are and it opened us to being what we became, good and bad things…. It was the crossroads of our being, and it was a hell of a crossroads: the suffering, the enormous tragedy of the whole thing.”- Shelby Foote, from The Civil War
When the illustrated edition of The Civil War was first published, The New York Time hailed it as “a treasure for the eye and mind.” Now Geoffrey Ward’s magisterial work of history is available in a text-only edition that interweaves the author’s narrative with the voices of the men and women who lived through the cataclysmic trial of our nationhood: not just Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, and Robert E. Lee, but genteel Southern ladies and escaped slaves, cavalry officers and common foot soldiers who fought in Yankee blue and Rebel gray.
The Civil War also includes essays by our most distinguished historians of the era: Don E. Fehrenbacher, on the war’s origins; Barbara J. Fields, on the freeing of the slaves; Shelby Foote, on the war’s soldiers and commanders; James M. McPherson, on the political dimensions of the struggle; and C. Vann Woodward, assessing the America that emerged from the war’s ashes.
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Geoffrey C. Ward
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Ric Burns
Ric Burns is a documentary filmmaker best known for his work on the acclaimed PBS series The Civil War, which he… More about Ric Burns
About Ken Burns
Ken Burns, the producer and director of numerous film series, including The War, founded his own documentary film company, Florentine Films,… More about Ken Burns
About Geoffrey C. Ward
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Ric Burns
Ric Burns is a documentary filmmaker best known for his work on the acclaimed PBS series The Civil War, which he… More about Ric Burns
About Ken Burns
Ken Burns, the producer and director of numerous film series, including The War, founded his own documentary film company, Florentine Films,… More about Ken Burns
About Geoffrey C. Ward
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Ric Burns
Ric Burns is a documentary filmmaker best known for his work on the acclaimed PBS series The Civil War, which he… More about Ric Burns
About Ken Burns
Ken Burns, the producer and director of numerous film series, including The War, founded his own documentary film company, Florentine Films,… More about Ken Burns
About Geoffrey C. Ward
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Geoffrey C. Ward
Geoffrey C. Ward, historian and screenwriter, is the author of sixteen books, including A First-Class Temperament: The Emergence of Franklin Roosevelt, which… More about Geoffrey C. Ward
About Ric Burns
Ric Burns is a documentary filmmaker best known for his work on the acclaimed PBS series The Civil War, which he… More about Ric Burns
About Ken Burns
Ken Burns, the producer and director of numerous film series, including The War, founded his own documentary film company, Florentine Films,… More about Ken Burns
